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Actress Nazanin Boniadi spearheaded the launch of an Amnesty International campaign in Auckland on Saturday. (File photo).
An Amazon actress Middle Earth The television series headlined the launch of Amnesty International’s annual Write for Rights campaign in Auckland on Saturday.
Nazanin Boniadi, also known for her role in the political thriller series Homeland, is in New Zealand filming the Middle Earth, based on JRR Tolkien’s Lord of the Ringsand joined members of Amnesty International Aotearoa New Zealand on Mission Bay Beach in Auckland to spearhead the launch.
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Middle-earth series actress Nazanin Boniadi joined Amnesty International Aotearoa members at Mission Bay in Auckland on Saturday to launch the annual Write for Rights campaign.
Boniadi, who was born in Iran and raised in England, has worked with the organization since 2009.
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“Nazanin is a fantastic ambassador for Amnesty around the world, she has advocated for Amnesty in the UK and the US, and now New Zealand,” said Margaret Taylor, Community Director at Amnesty International.
Several of Nazanin’s production partners also attended the launch.
Write for Rights is the world’s largest human rights campaign, receiving millions of letters every year calling for justice for human rights defenders around the world.
Taylor said that the millions of people who participate in Write for Rights each year “defend the freedom and dignity of all people.”
Anyone could write a letter, and since handwritten letters were less common now, they had a greater impact.
“The popular Prime Minister of New Zealand has put New Zealand on the map, and a letter from a country like that will give impetus to our call,” Taylor said.
“And if they get letters from somewhere as far away as New Zealand, it means that everyone knows what they are doing,” he said.
Taylor said that Covid-19 had brought out the best in people, but some governments had seen the pandemic as an opportunity to suppress people.
“But we know that when many of us speak, governments listen and make improvements.”
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Simply writing letters has proven to be a life-saving act, he said.
“People are regularly released from death row or prison, the charges against them are dropped and they meet with whānau.”
People also wrote to people who were being persecuted or in prison.
“These messages of support are like a hug, allowing human rights defenders to know that they are not alone, while informing governments that we are aware of their irregularities.”
Write for Rights is valid until December 31. For information, visit write.amnesty.org.nz
